Dozens of Atlantans protested outside the state capitol Thursday evening in response to Gov. Brian Kemp’s decision to mobilize the state’s National Guard in support of President Donald Trump’s federal immigration crackdown. According to the governor’s order, shared with Capital B Atlanta via email earlier this week, approximately 75 Georgia National Guard soldiers and airmen […]
Incarceration
Posted inCriminal Justice, Incarceration
Communities Over Cages: Coalition Calls on Atlanta to End Jail Lease
As the final year of Fulton County’s four-year lease for use of the Atlanta City Detention Center approaches, a group of local and national criminal justice advocacy groups is calling on the Atlanta City Council to support a resolution to begin planning how the county will remove its 435 inmates from the facility. The coalition […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Incarceration, Politics & Policy
Largest ICE Facility Planned at Georgia Private Prison With Deadly Record
While much of the outrage over the rising number of immigration detention facilities is focused on Florida’s “Alligator Alcatraz,” Georgia is quietly working on building the largest ICE facility in the country, thanks to the passage of President Donald Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill.” Charlton County, located 10 miles from the Florida border and 274 miles […]
Posted inCourts, Criminal Justice, Incarceration
Fani Willis Calls Commissioners ‘Liars’ in Jail Funds Fight
As you walk into District Attorney Fani Willis’ office, housed on the third floor of Fulton County Courthouse, you’re greeted by a Malcolm X quote posted along the hallway. “I’m for truth no matter who tells it. I’m for justice, no matter who it’s for or against.” But she’s faced several tests on her ability […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Incarceration, Mental Health
‘The System Is Failing My Son’: Mother of Bipolar Man Fears for Son’s Life Inside Fulton County Jail
Latreece Williams hasn’t had a good night’s sleep at her home in Perkerson Park in over a month. Not since her son Dewayne Lamar High Jr., who was diagnosed with epilepsy and bipolar schizoaffective disorder in 2011, has been locked up in Fulton County Jail. “I call watch command every day to ask for a […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Incarceration, Policing
Atlanta Police Asked for a Diversion Option for Low-Level Arrests. They Rarely Use It.
When local officials first opened the Center for Diversion and Services, they touted its potential to divert nearly 15,000 bookings each year that would otherwise enter Fulton County jails or police custody at Grady Memorial Hospital’s psychiatric unit. “This more community-based approach is essential for creating a more effective and compassionate public safety ecosystem,” Atlanta […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Incarceration
Overcrowded, Understaffed and Unsafe: One Woman’s Night in Atlanta’s City Jail
Dominique Grant said she was in the middle of a mental health crisis when she was pulled over driving on Moreland Avenue by a Georgia State Trooper the Friday before Mother’s Day. Arrested under suspicion of DUI, the 32-year-old mother was booked into the Atlanta City Detention Center (ACDC) around 11 p.m. that night. Grant […]
Posted inIncarceration
Two Deaths at Fulton Jail Raise More Questions about Safety and Oversight
Last fall, the Department of Justice released a scathing 97-page report detailing the constitutional and human rights violations that have led to in-custody deaths and abuses in the Fulton County jail. As a result, Fulton County entered into a consent decree earlier this year with the Justice Department to address the many staffing, overcrowding and […]
Posted inIncarceration, Policing, Politics & Policy, Public Safety
Overcrowded and Understaffed: Fulton County Jail Gets Money to Hire More Deputies
Fulton County commissioners voted on Wednesday to allocate additional funding to staff Sheriff Patrick Labat’s office, following a scathing November U.S. Department of Justice report that cited understaffing as a cause of rampant, unchecked violence at Fulton County Jail. Vice Chair Bob Ellis introduced the resolution, which will support the hiring and retention of new […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Incarceration
Atlanta Mom’s Nonprofit Helps Teens With Incarcerated Parents Stay on Track
When Tiffany Gibson left home in 2008 to serve a nearly four-year prison sentence, her oldest son, Telly McGuire, was well on his way to pursuing a college education. Then 14 years old, McGuire had stellar grades and was active in extracurricular activities, according to Gibson. But through his tenure at Benjamin E. Mays High […]